Two staff members from U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski's Washington DC office visited Unalaska this week. The pair met community officials and a few members of the public Wednesday at a 10 a.m. gathering at the city's senior center.
Murkowski's staffers appeared at the senior center to "gather public comments and concerns regarding the lack of a way to keep elders here in their last days with their families," according to an Unalaska Senior Center Facebook post.
Longtime resident Harriet Berikoff talked about the state of eldercare in Unalaska, recalling a late resident who had wanted to remain on the island after being diagnosed with terminal cancer.
"She got up in front of everybody," Berikoff said, "And she cried, 'I don't want to leave here, she said, I want to die here, but I can't stay her.' So they took her out, less than a month, she died. These kinds of things are happening, it's pretty sad and it's pretty devastating. To me, we have like all these capital projects done in this city and whatnot. Our elders, to me, are being abused. I'm sorry, but that's how I feel."
Mayor Shirley Marquardt said it's common for her to hear stories about people being turned down for Medicaid, often for unfair reasons. She told a story about a local woman who inherited a piece of property in name only.
"Because her name is on that piece of property, that she gets no income from - just Social Security, every month - she's been turned down for Medicaid," Marquardt said.
Council members Bong Tungul and YudelkaLeclere were in the audience, as were Marquardt and City Manager David Martinson. City officials did not notify the general public about the gathering on Unalaska's eldercare issues, nor did Murkowski's office publicize the staff members' visit to the island or respond to an interview request from KUCB.
In an email sent the day after the visit, Murkowski's press secretary Jenna Mason said, "Senator Murkowski’s staff is spread throughout Alaska during this week-long state work period. Two staff members were in Unalaska for a brief trip and made a scheduled stop at the Senior Center to follow up on conversations the Senator had with the Senior Center residents during her most recent visit to Unalaska. The visit and trip were informal and served as an opportunity for staff to interact with and learn about the community."
The Unalaska Senior Center's Tuesday afternoon Facebook post urged all Unalaskans to attend. The post was the only public advertisement of the gathering.
Some attendees told their personal stories to the two staffers, and asked them to pass along requests of assistance on pressing eldercare issues to Senator Murkowski. Together the group spoke about topics such as qualifying for Medicaid, the enormous financial cost of assisted living and the lack of hospice care and aging in place resources on the island.
